Slaughter-Free Chicken and Duck to Hit Stores by 2021

Silicon Valley-based food technology company Memphis Meats announced this week that its “clean” (often referred to as “lab-grown” or “cultured”) poultry products will be available to consumers by 2021. The company is a leader amongst clean meat developers and grows meat from animal cells using far fewer resources than traditional animal agriculture. While Memphis Meats previously disclosed plans to introduce clean beef meatballs to consumers along the same timeline, it’s production of poultry—including chicken and duck—is an innovative development in the company’s product line. Chicken is the most popular source of protein amongst Americans—who consume an average 90 pounds of chicken meat per year—while duck is popular amongst residents of mainland China (the total consumption of which is 6 billion pounds per year). “Chicken and duck are at the center of the table in so many cultures around the world,” Memphis Meats’ CEO Uma Valeti says, “but the way conventional poultry is raised creates huge problems for the environment, animal welfare, and human health.” Memphis Meats’ served its new products—prepared as Duck L’Orange and fried chicken, per the request of Valeti’s daughter—at a private tasting event this week attended by members of food advocacy firm Good Food Institute. “It is thrilling to introduce the first chicken and duck that didn’t require raising animals,” Memphis Meats’ CEO Uma Valeti says. “This is a historic moment for the clean meat movement.”